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Sunday of Advent - Hope! - Isaiah 9:1-7 By Pastor Lee Hemen November 29, 2015 Sometimes we can be like the old song from the TV show Hee Haw that lamented, "Gloom, despair, and agony on me; deep, dark depression, excessive misery! If it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all; gloom, despair, and agony on me!" Some us understand the lament of this song while others sing it simply because things are not going the way they expected. Life hardly ever does. Yet on the Sunday of Advent we light the candle of hope. Hope is more than wishful thinking; it is the outcry of the human heart and the certainty of God's promise. We as his children hope in him because we know who he is and what he has done. The Israelites of Isaiah's day had no such experience. They should have been able to trust God and the promises he made from knowing their own history, but in the midst of war, famine, and the threat of enslavement it can be tough to see God or his promises. Perhaps...

Thanksgiving! - John 17:1-13 By Pastor Lee Hemen November 22, 2015 The early Pilgrims understood thanksgiving. In fact, after surviving the first years in the American wilderness, they deliberately set out to print a song book of praise taken from the Psalms. The Bay Psalm Book is an important piece of our nation’s history. It was the first book entirely written and printed in the Colonies. When one considers the difficulties of mere survival during this time, accounting for the short time of 20 years after the first arrivals in Plymouth in 1620, the magnitude of the effort and accomplishment is even more impressive. The first printing press in New England was purchased and imported specifically to print this book in order to give God praise and thanksgiving! Why would our forefathers make such a big deal out of praising and thanking God? We can forget what we are truly thankful for when we are faced with the difficulties of life. Jesus knew this to be true as well and when his discipl...

Overcome the world! - John 16:16-33 By Pastor Lee Hemen November 15, 2013 I have learned that the only certainties we have life are more than death and taxes; I also believe there is the certainty of our faith and that things in life will change. The radio host Paul Harvey stated, "In times like these it is good to remember that there have always been times like these." Life happens whether we like it or not and no amount of worrying will change the outcome; however, we can overcome the world and what it throws at us. There are those who struggle everyday in order to just get through the day, however, there are also those times when each of us wonder how we will get through another day. Jesus' disciples would face such a predicament soon and so Jesus begins to share with them not only how tough it will be but also how they can overcome the world they live in because of their faith in him. Let's see how we are to overcome the world… READ: John 16:16-33 Life is short wh...

The Spirit of truth! - John 16:1-15 By Pastor Lee Hemen November 8, 2015 Contrary to popular opinion, truth is not relative. Truth is truth and sometimes it can be hard to swallow, especially if one is caught in a lie. Yet there are those who hate the truth because it exposes them for what they are, phonies. Christians are to live by the truth no matter what the consequences. In fact, we are to be guided by the truth. Not like the mother who invited the neighbors to dinner and asked her son to pray over the meal. Being a bit shy, because he was put on the spot by his mom, the son lamented, "I don’t know what to say!" His mother encouraged, "Just say what you heard your father say at breakfast." Obediently the little boy bowed his head and repeated, "Oh Lord, we've got those awful people coming over for dinner!" Jesus continued here in John's gospel to relate exactly what the Holy Spirit's job would be in the life of a believer. He relates that ...